Another boon from that 30th anniversary issue (
Superman 207, 80 Page Giant G-48, June (July) 1968), was a Wayne Boring illustrated story called "The Captive of the Amazons" which originally appeared in the issue of
Action immediately after the one that featured "The Superman from Outer Space," and also by Otto Binder with Stan Kaye inks--no. 266, July 1960.
This one is not to be confused with "The Super-Prisoner of Amazon Island," also pencilled by Boring, which Aldous can be found describing on page 10 of the old DCMB "Superman in the Seventies," originally from
Action no. 235, December 1957. I haven't tracked down that story myself, although I understand it can be found in both
Superman Annual no. 3 and
Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane no. 104. I hold out little hope of ever getting that Annual, unless DC releases it as a replica edition, but I'm optimistic that I might someday soon get a copy of LL 104.
Anyhow, on the old 70s thread, Aldous offered up "Super-Prisoner" as a fine example of Boring's talents for drawing glamorous and beautiful women. Having never seen it I can't speak to that, but "Captive" seems to be yet another example of Boring's gifts for rendering lovely ladies.
The prime Amazon in this tale is Jena, lovely blonde Amazon Princess of the planet Adoria, resplendent in a green body suit which curiously has these sparkly gleamings as inked by Kaye bouncing off Jena's form. But it's actually the glimpses of her Amazon attendants which most capture my fancy. Somewhat like Zamarons, these young ladies are outfitted in quasi-Roman armour chainmail vests, with curious helmets that seem like a cross between Roman Legion helmets and miner's hard hats, with wierd promontories on the top that seem to have no functional purpose. The ladies have little abutments on their vests that cover their shoulders, but their arms are bare. While the nearly knee-high metallic boots cover their otherwise bare legs--together with a frilly device upon their better parts which seems hardly to qualify as a skirt as it covers nothing and seems entirely see-through. Even Jena's queenly mother, despite her advancing age and generous girth, does not demure from wearing this same outfit, but for the fact that the Legion helmet/miner's hardhat is replaced by a coronet.
Apparently these Amazons have no shame about their bodies because their bald, little men-folk are so lacking in aggression that the strong women have slight fear of inviting unwanted male attentions, and may happily expose their bodies in public without danger of molestation from any quarter.
Ah, but yes there is a story here I should give some passing reference to. Well, Jena is a mysterious movie star on Earth who in actuality has been searching for her Ben Affleck--which happens to be Superman. Unbenounced to the general public or Superman or the reader, Jena has manipulated circumstances so that Clark Kent will be cast in her new movie. When they are on board the supposedly mock spaceship for this new movie production, Clark is taken captive, exposed to Green K, and transported to Adoria, where Jena intends to make the Man of Steel her sex slave--I mean--husband.
Threatening to blow up the Earth with a death-ray, Jena induces Superman to agree to be her consort (the sixth, her other five husbands having perished in battle with robots). And to ensure his fidelity she offers him a drink laced with a magic love potion. As he downs the cup of desirous liquid, Superman becomes an ardent suitor and actually is too demonstrative. Clumsily wrecking the subway tube under the city as he retrieves a big diamond for his bride, breaking the king's crown and a priceless urn with the loud vibrations of his singing {"I'M SO WILD ABOUT JENA, I'M CHASIN' COMETS ALL THE TIME!!")
Apparently men do have some purpose on Adoria, and her father presides over the wedding. But at the banquet reception, the boorish Superman shows no table manners, acts a perfect glutton, and burps so loudly that the force of his belch sends the wedding guests careening across the room.
When the rebel robots (who occupy the hills surrounding the royal city) launch a raid, Superman pushes them back with little effort and then deposits them in the planet's main reservoir--poisoning the prime water-supply on this water deprived world.
Jena bitterly regrets her choice in a mate, and asks her father to "get me out of this nightmare." And he does just that by declaring the marriage annulled and tearing up the license.
But Superman (who was pretending all the time to be in love and to be boorish--as the love potion had no effect on him) flies away from the Amazon world into space and then sends an ice planet into orbit around Adoria so that the Adorians will have plenty of fresh water raining down upon them for years to come.
After which, Jena returns the favour by revealing the location of her deathray so that he may destroy it.
*****
By the way, reading the review of "The Super-Prisoner of Amazon Island," on the old DCMB, I noticed that Aldous never quite got to the conclusion of this story, and now it's bothering me--just how did it all turn out in the end?
To refresh our memories here's the review by Aldous from that thread:
Do you have the sexy story from Action #235 (1957)? "The Super-Prisoner of Amazon Island." Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye, artists.
This may be an example of what you're talking about. This story is another favourite of mine. The amazons in the story are all very leggy, shapely and sexy. Wayne gave Lois a nice figure (I guess), but still managed to make her homely and dull-looking (the short hair doesn't help).
I'll run through the story for anyone who's never seen it.
Lois and a group of women become marooned on an uncharted island. The girls manage to get the ship's radio working and send out an S.O.S. They are then startled by the appearance of a group of scantily-clad women - the leader introduces herself to Lois and the girls as Elsha, Queen of the Amazons.
Elsha boasts of a "land without men," and explains to Lois that the Amazons despise all men for being weaklings. She demonstrates her strength by throwing a spear clean through a tree trunk.
Superman arrives not long after, and Elsha is shocked by the Man of Steel's feats of super-strength. Of course, it doesn't take her long to decide that Superman is the catch of a lifetime and begins scheming to make him her husband. (Maybe Lois can sympathise with Elsha...)
The Amazons bring chains with which to enforce an Amazonian tribal law, that any man who trespasses on the island must become a slave. Superman is amused by this, but Lois warns him that the chains have a greenish glow. They're made from the metal of a Kryptonite meteor.
Superman is about to beat a hasty retreat when he realises the Kryptonite is having no effect on him. He decides to allow them to chain him while he tries to figure out what is preventing the Kryptonite from affecting him.
The Amazons hold an auction for the "super-slave". Lois outbids the Queen but Elsha tears up the Amazonian law and so invalidates the auction. But Superman is still not "free" because now the Queen presents another written law that basically means whichever woman can give Superman a task he is unable to perform must become his wife.
One by one he uses his wits (and super-powers) to perform the tasks. Of the marooned women, only Lois (accidentally) is able to come up with a task Superman cannot carry out. Lois does not want to force Superman to have her, so she comes up with what she thinks is the easiest of the tests - but her test is, in fact, the toughest. She asks Superman what is behind a large rock (a single flower), thinking he will just look through the rock with his x-ray vision. Superman accepts the task, but finds the rock is composed of lead ore, rendering his super-vision useless. The Man of Steel admits he "can't see a thing" behind the rock. Lois pulls out the flower, confirming there's "not a thing" behind the rock, thereby releasing Superman from the trap.
The Queen gives the final task to Superman. She orders him to make her a commoner, and Superman thinks, "How can I change her whole ancestry... or the royal blood in her veins?" Then he uses super-vision to read a tiny inscription on the Queen's crown: "Amazon Law: If crown is lost--or destroyed, the reigning queen loses her royalty."
He destroys the crown with heat vision, making Elsha a commoner. But now he is shocked to find the Kryptonite weakens him, and realises with horror that the Queen's crown contained some rare substance that neutralised the Kryptonite.
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